pleasure of rain

8" by 10" daily pastel painting, unframed

Finally!

I've been in a bit of a slump lately. Since I finished this piece I feel that I can move on.

I once was one of those people who had many unfinished paintings and projects hanging around. It always prevented me from finishing anything. Now, at the most, I'll have 3 paintings that I work on alternately.

E-mail me for more info

­rain (unfinished)

I started this 8 x 10 painting a couple of weeks ago and then became distracted by many things. Since it's been a while since my last post I felt the need to share SOMETHING!

It also helps inspire me to get back on track.

I have a couple of commissoned pieces in the works also (you know who you are and yes, I haven't forgotten).

I mentioned this composition in a previous post. I worked on the reference pic in Photoshop using 3 different photos. The woman is a model who I frequently use.

I've been toying with the idea of taking a different direction in my work. Maybe a different medium. Although I love the ease, colors and application of pastels I can't help but wonder if breathing all those particles is bad for my health. I've read that some pastelists use a mask and air purifiers. I understand the use of air purifiers but the idea of using a mask just removes all the pleasure for me.

I haven't made a decision yet and I'll just keep working with pastels until I do. I also have a desire to work on larger paintings which would prevent me from working on daily paintings. You may have noticed that my pieces have been gradually getting larger anyway. I suppose I could try to do both but there are only 24 hours in a day and a third of those are committed to sleep. I'll keep you updated.

And thank you for stopping by - it's really appreciated!

nude with sunflowers

19" x 14" pastel painting, unframed
painted on black Canson Mi-Tientes paper

This is an older painting.

A number of years ago I worked on quite a few paintings with nudes and flowers together. Some of them were digital photography pieces with a surreal slant.

I'm still working on a new piece and busy juggling web work and (luckily) shipping paintings that have been sold.

Thank you!

$170 with free shipping and handling in the US
E-mail me for International shipping rates or other inquiries.

surreal painters

Hi everyone!

I want to announce the launch of my new website.

Some of you may have already received the news in an email.

The website is dedicated to surreal artists.

My plan is to interview surreal painters on a regular basis. I already have 3 lined up for an interview. I'm having a lot of fun finding them on the web. There's a wealth of surrealists out there with astounding work.

The first interview is my own. Kinda weird but some of you may be interested in my process which I describe.

Please visit the site and tell your friends who may be interested. I'm hoping to give these artists more exposure. If you are a surreal painter wishing to be interviewed send me a note.

beach houses

9 1/2" by 7 1/2" daily pastel painting, unframed

11 x 14 double mat included

(fits standard frame size)

This was lost in the archives of my blog so I wanted to post it again. The image is much better than the older post since I have a new scanner.

I used a photo for reference which I took when I lived on Long Island, New York many years ago. I believe it was taken somewhere near Hampton Beach on a long summer drive with the kids.

It makes me nostalgic. We lived 1/4 mile from the beach near Riverhead along the Long Island Sound. Our neighborhood had a private beach and it was usually deserted except for the 3 kids and I. Now I live inland in Massachusetts and the nearest beach is about an hour away.

$180 with free shipping and handling in the US
E-mail me for International shipping rates or other inquiries.

primitive garden painting

13" x 8 1/2" daily pastel painting
2004

I wasn't going to post this piece. It was an experiment in primitive style painting.

But then my sister in-law was visiting and out of all the paintings hanging in my studio she said that she would pick this one.

Sometimes the paintings that I reject are the ones other people may like. So I'm making this available.

I'm busy working on a painting that's more representative of my style. It should be finished within the next couple of days so please stay tuned!

It's the one of the woman in the rain on the 9/05/2007 post below. I'm very pleased with the results so far.

$100 with free shipping and handling in the US
E-mail me for International shipping rates or other inquiries.

abstract koi pond

8" by 8" daily pastel painting, unframed
(matting for visual enhancement only)

I started working on this as a sketch for an acrylic painting. My goal was to focus on color and abstraction.

I get ocular migraines occasionally (without pain) and wasn't expecting one while I was working but it came. Had this been one of my traditional works I would have had to stop but since it was abstract I continued to paint with the visual impairment.

When I have these migraines it's as if I'm peering through a clear kaleidoscope without the rotation but with a lot of shimmery moving shapes. I found spots in my vision where I could see through the trail of shapes occasionally.

That's my best description although it really isn't accurate.

In the past I've had the idea to paint during one of these episodes. It's harder than I thought. Next time I have one and I'm painting maybe I'll just go with the flow and see where it takes me.

SOLD

geisha

9" by 12" daily pastel painting, unframed
painted on black artspectrum colorfix pastel board

I painted this last year.

It seems that her face doesn't look as Japanese as I would have liked. I must have subconsciously westernized her a bit.

Except for that I'm happy with the outcome of the piece.

I'm still busy catching up on work around the house, mailing paintings and commissioned work.

My mother, who fell ill was in the hospital this week and my daughter and I spent most of the time keeping her company. She's home now . . and well.

SOLD

in progress

Strange how things happen. In my previous post I talked about how I didn't seem to have time to paint and do everything else in my life and today . . . . we had to bring my mother to the hospital. I just came home after being with her all day and will probably spend most of tomorrow with her at the hospital. If all goes well for her, another few days will be spent helping her adjust to being home. And my painting will be on hold for that time. So I thought I'd share a couple of things I'm working on.
	This is large painting I've been trying to get back to which I started about a month ago. It still needs a lot more work. Getting the shadows to work is going to take some forethought since I don't have the actual woman in front of me out in the desert. Good thing! I hope to finish this next month and when I do I'll post in on my blog of larger paintings.
	Here's a sketch I worked on in Photoshop. Pretty self explanatory. This piece will probably measure to about 11 x 14 so it will be listed here on my daily blog. More to come soon!

juggling

Between housework, finding work for my son - academic that is . . he's homeschooled in a very untraditional sense, caring for my elderly parents, cleaning, cooking and keeping the garden from being totally over run with weeds, it's a wonder that I find the time to paint at all. But paint I must.
Voicing my frustration to my husband today, he told me that taking a break from painting was not an option, which at the time seemed to be the only thing that I could (reluctantly) temporarily ignore. So he offered to cook a few days a week and we put together a plan to tidy up those rooms that are in desperate need.
Now I know that part of the reason he offered is because I'm not a very happy person if I don't paint. I discovered that through unintended trial and error. The other reason is that he's very thoughtful in considering my mental/emotional state important.
My husband is a proponent of "The key to happiness is not doing what you love, but loving what you do". He also was saying that way before it became cliche.
I on the other hand am not very good at applying that wisdom to my life. Painting is the one thing that keeps me stable and happy to do the rest of the stuff which otherwise is overwhelming.

It looks like I'll be able to make time for my first love after all, while my second love takes over a few days a week. Did I mention that he's an engineer? That may be relevant ;-)

­shipping and returns

I thought it might be of interest to buyers and pastel painters who are inexperienced with the shipping process to see how I ship my paintings.

Packing: I carefully pack all my paintings.

First they are mounted on a 3/16" or heavier foam core board that is approx. 2" all around the artwork.
The artwork is then secured with acid free tape on 4 corners to the board.

Then glassine paper (a smooth surfaced clear paper that does does not act as a magnet for the pastel particles) is taped securely on all sides.

Another foam core board the same size as the first one is placed over this and taped tightly, sandwiching the painting between the foam core board to prevent it from shifting and smearing.

This is then placed into a padded packing envelope that is slightly larger than the foam core. Along with the painting I include thorough matting and framing instructions.
I always ship the painting using Priority Mail with the USPS.

I have shipped over 100 paintings in the last year. Out of those only one was slightly smudged which may have been a result of improper unpacking. I was able to instruct the buyer how to repair it (it was a minor smudge), and she was satisfied with the result. She also received a lesson in working in pastels at the same time.

RETURN POLICY: If by any remote chance the painting ARRIVES damaged (proof will be required) I will reimburse you or paint a new one free of charge. I fully guarantee my work. If you think that the painting was not properly represented on the web you may return it for a full refund (not including shipping). You will be refunded once I inspect the painting to verify that it was returned in the same condition.

If you choose to return a painting please do so within 3 days of receiving it and send it the same way it was shipped. Also email me so I know to expect it.

ON FRAMING:
Generally I do not sell pastel paintings on the web with mats and frames. Frames are very individualized and dependent on where you plan to hang it, personal color preferences and varying costs. I feel that it is best for you to choose your mat and frame. However, if you would prefer that I have your painting framed, prices begin at $150. This will also increase the shipping cost due to weight. If you are a buyer please email me with your questions.

Oh by the way, the whistle painting is still available.

waiting

9" by 7 1/2" daily pastel painting, unframed

This is another painting (actually I think it qualifies as a drawing) where I used a reference I had on my hard drive.

I'm working on loosening up my hand. I tend to focus on detail a lot, which is often good but I'd like it be obvious that the work is in pastel from time to time. It was very hard to resist rubbing the pastel particles into the paper. I always layer but work them into each other. In this piece I loosely layered one color over another without blending.

Fun!

Hope you like it.

$180 with free shipping and handling in the US
E-mail me for International shipping rates or other inquiries.